M2A1 Print Concepts Template

The Case.
It is the third quarter of Kindergarten. The new Kindergarten teacher, Mr. Jackson, has come
to you for advice. Mr. Jackson wants to update his guided reading groups since he hasn’t
changed them since the start of the school year.

He recently retested four students who started the year working on print concepts and letter
identification. He needs your help determining whether one or more of them are ready to
move to a more challenging reading group. He knows that each group should be as
homogeneous as possible (similar instructional needs) so he can differentiate his literacy
instruction.

All four learners are native English speakers who have not previously been identified as
having learning difficulties. Fun fact: Jacob and Sarah are twins who have been in the same
classroom since preschool, by parent choice. Audrey is their first cousin!

Your Mission.
Analyze the Kindergarten test results in order to advise Mr. Jackson on his group composition.

Diacritical marks for copying/pasting:

ă ĕ ĭ ǒ ŭ ā ē ī ō ū ə

PART I: AUDREY’S DATA TABLE (5 points)

Complete the chart using Audrey’s LIT & CAP data. Be concise (use bullet points) while also providing
enough information to give Mr. Jackson a complete list of strengths and needs. Provide specific
examples from the data set to support your analysis. In the Needs column, stick to the facts without
making instructional suggestions. The fourth row is done for you as a model.

Please use quotation marks when referring to letter names and forward slashes when referring to letter
sounds. Include diacritical marks for schwa (ə) & vowels. Ex: The letter “o” makes the sound /ŏ/

Topic Score Areas of Strength Areas of Need

LIT/ 18/26  She correctly identified the  Audrey displayed difficulty
Capital sounds for most of the in correctly identifying the
Letter presented letters, indicating capital letter J, mistaking it
Names a solid understanding of for G.
uppercase letter  She did not respond to
recognition. multiple capital letters
including C, G, H, I, N, V,
and W, suggesting potential
gaps in her recognition of
 these specific letters.

LIT/ 17/26  She exhibits proficiency in  Audrey displayed difficulty in

Lowercas recognizing the shapes and correctly identifying the lowercase
e Letter forms of most lowercase letter "j," mistakenly guessing "g,"
Names letters, indicating a strong which indicates a recurring
foundational knowledge of confusion between these two letters
lowercase letter in both uppercase and lowercase
recognition. forms.
 She missed several lowercase
letters, including c, i, n, p, q, t, v,
and w, showing overlap with the
missed uppercase letters and
suggesting potential gaps in her
recognition of these specific letters
across cases.
LIT/ 15/26  She accurately identified the  Audrey’s trouble with G
Letter sounds for most of the presented and J represent consonant
Sounds letters, indicating solid phonemic sounds that are formed
awareness skills. towards the back of the
mouth indicating that she
may struggle with fine
phonemic distinctions.
 Audrey struggles with H,
K, and W are consonants
that represent aspirated
sounds which means she
might have issues
distinguishing between
these sounds.
 I, N, and Y are difficult for
her maybe because they are
vowel and nasal sounds,
which might indicate that
she is not yet proficient in
recognizing subtle
variations in vowel sounds.
 M, V, X represent
consonant sounds that are
formed at different parts of
the mouth, but may share
similar characteristics,
making them challenging
for her to differentiate.
 CAP/ 12/15  Audrey knows that the print  Audrey may need support with
Print contains the message and that 1:1 matching, identifying
Concepts print proceeds from left to right punctuation marks (periods),
with return sweep. She can and consistently distinguishing
distinguish between first/last between letters and words.
and top/bottom. Audrey can
identify a question mark, a
capital letter, and the first/last
letter of a word.

 Audrey is almost able to point

1:1 to the words when an adult
reads a simple page of text.

PART II: JACOB’S DATA TABLE (5 points)

Complete the chart using Jacob’s LIT & CAP data. Be concise while also providing enough information to
give Mr. Jackson a clear sense of his strengths and needs. The third row is done for you.

Topic Score Areas of Strength Areas of Need

LIT/ 6/26  Jacob demonstrates  Jacob displayed difficulty
Capital proficiency in correctly in correctly identifying the
Letter identifying several uppercase letters G and M,
Names uppercase letters during the mistaking G for C and M
test, including A, C, J, O, S, for W.
and W.  Jacob requires assistance in
 These letters that Jacob can the remaining 20 letters.
identify happen to be part
of his name, except for B.

LIT/ 6/26  Jacob demonstrates proficiency  Jacob displayed difficulty

Lowercas in correctly identifying several in correctly identifying the
e Letter lowercase letters during the test, lowercase letter "w,"
Names including a, c, j, o, s, and w. mistaking it for "m," which
 Like the capital letters, Jacob suggests a potential
can identify happen to be part of confusion between these
his name, except for b. two letters.
 He did not respond to
several lowercase letters,
indicating gaps in his
recognition of these
specific letters.
 These omissions may
indicate that Jacob has
trouble distinguishing and
 recalling individual
lowercase letter forms,
particularly for the letters
he did not respond to and
the letter "w.".

LIT/ 3/26  Jacob correctly produced one  Jacob needs support with all of
Letter continuous letter sound: /s/. the remaining letter sounds,
Sounds starting with high-utility
 Jacob produced consonant stop consonant sounds such as /t/,
sounds with schwa for the /n/ and /p/ and high-utility short
letters “b” & “j,” saying /bə- vowel sounds such as /ă/ and
bə-/ and /jə-jə-/. Both letters /ĭ/.
are in his name.
 Jacob may have difficulty
 Jacob gave the soft sound for isolating phonemes
“c,” saying /sə-sə-/. (Soft “c” is (eliminating schwa).
not counted on this test.) This
letter is also in his name.
CAP/ 10/15  Jacob demonstrates a strong  Jacob struggles with word
Print understanding of by word (1:1) matching, as
Concepts orientation of text, print he tends to point to lines
containing the message, rather than individual
directionality, return sweep, words. This suggests a need
first and last parts of the for further practice in
story, top and bottom of the tracking and decoding
picture, page sequencing, individual words.
and punctuation. He has a  Additionally, he has
good grasp of basic print difficulty identifying the
concepts and text first and last letters of a
navigation. word, indicating issues with
phonemic awareness and
 He also shows proficiency also letter-sound
in recognizing capital correspondence.
letters.

PART III: SARAH’S DATA TABLE (5 points)

Complete the chart using Sarah’s LIT & CAP data. Be concise while also providing enough information to
give Mr. Jackson a clear sense of her strengths and needs.

Topic Score Areas of Strength Areas of Need

LIT/ 23/26  Sarah correctly identified the  Sarah mistakenly identified the
Capital sounds for most of the capital letters J and M,
Letter presented letters, indicating a mistaking J for T and M for W.
Names solid understanding of  Sarah did not respond to the
uppercase letter recognition. letter Q, suggesting a potential
gap in her recognition of this
specific letter.

LIT/ 23/26  Her accurate responses for the  Sarah identified the letter d as
Lowercas majority of lowercase letters b, the letter q as p and the letter
e Letter indicate a solid understanding u as n.
Names of lowercase letter recognition.  Sarah may have difficulty
distinguishing and recalling
individual lowercase letter
forms, particularly for the
letters d, q, and u.

LIT/ 19/26  Sarah correctly identified  Sarah struggled with specific

Letter 17 out of 26 letters in the letters, particularly q and x,
Sounds letter sound test, indicating areas where she may
demonstrating proficiency need additional support.
with a variety of consonants  Incorrect responses for certain
and vowels. letters (b, h, j, l, o, u, z) suggest
 She correctly identified confusion or inconsistency in
common letters such as (a, applying letter sounds.
c, d, e, f, g, i, k, m, n, p, r, s,  Some of Sarah's incorrect
t, v, w, z) responses involved substituting
 one sound for another (e.g., /bə/
for b, /ch/ for j), indicating
possible confusion
distinguishing between similar
sounds.

CAP/ 9/15  Orientation of Text: Sarah  Word by Word (1:1)

Print adeptly identifies the front Matching: Sarah struggles
Concepts and back of a book. with pointing to words
 Print Contains the Message: individually while they are
She successfully being read aloud, instead
distinguishes between vaguely pointing to lines.
pictures and words.  Letter vs. Word: She has
 Directionality: Sarah difficulty distinguishing
correctly demonstrates how between letters and words,
to track words while as evidenced by showing
reading, indicating an whole words when
understanding of left-to- prompted to show one or
right directionality. two letters or words.
 Return Sweep: She  Capital Letter: She failed to
understands the concept of identify a capital letter
 returning to the beginning when prompted, instead
of the next line after showing lower case “r”.
reading one line of text.

PART IV: TALIA’S DATA TABLE (5 points)

Complete the chart using Talia’s LIT & CAP data. Be concise while also providing enough information to
give Mr. Jackson a clear sense of her strengths and needs.

Topic Score Areas of Strength Areas of Need

LIT/ 26  Talia scored perfectly,  None
Capital suggesting a comprehensive
Letter understanding of uppercase
Names letters.
LIT/ 25  Talia’s ability to accurately  Talia made a single error in
Lowercas recognize the majority of identifying the lowercase letter
e Letter lowercase letters showcases a "g" as "y". While this mistake
Names strong foundational may indicate a slight confusion
understanding of lowercase between the two letter forms,
letter forms. it's important to note that it was
an isolated incident amidst an
otherwise exemplary
performance.
LIT/ 22  Talia demonstrated proficiency  Talia did not respond to the
Letter in identifying the sounds of 15 sounds of the letters C, G, and
Sounds letters out of 26. I, indicating need for targeted
 She correctly identified the support in distinguishing and
sounds for the following accurately articulating the
letters: A, E, F, K, L, M, N, P, sounds associated with these
Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, and Z. letters.
 Talia's ability to correctly  Talia may benefit from focused
associate sounds with a instruction on producing high-
majority of the presented letters utility consonant sounds such
indicates a strong foundation in as /b/, /d/, and /h/, as well as
phonemic awareness. vowel sounds like /o/ and /y/.
 Additionally, she may require
assistance in isolating
phonemes and eliminating
schwa sounds to enhance her
phonemic segmentation skills.

CAP/ 15  Talia demonstrates a strong  Talia doesn't show any areas of

Print understanding of orientation of need as she performed perfectly
Concepts text, print containing the across all aspects of the CAP
 message, directionality, return assessment. However, further
sweep, word by word assessment in more advanced
matching, first and last parts of literacy skills beyond Concepts
the story, top and bottom of the about Print might be necessary
picture, page sequencing, to comprehensively evaluate
punctuation, letter vs. word her reading abilities.
recognition, first and last letter
of a word, and capital letter
identification.

PART V: CONTENT STANDARDS (5 points)

Paste three Kindergarten Reading Foundations (RF) standards that are a good match for each
test that Mr. Jackson administered. Always include the code (e.g., K.RF.3a) when listing
standards. The second row is done for you. Do NOT choose K.RF.2 since these tests do not
measure Phonological Awareness.
Letter 1 Recognize and name all upper and lowercase letters of the alphabet.
Identification (K.RF.1f)
Test (LIT) 2 Demonstrate basic knowledge of one‐to‐one letter‐sound correspondence
by producing the primary or most frequent sound(s) for each consonant
and the five major vowels. (K.RF.3a)
Concepts 1 Follow words from left to right, top to bottom, and page by page.
about Print (K.RF.1a)
(CAP) 2 Recognize the difference between a letter and a printed word. (K.RF.1d)

PART VI: DISCUSSION (10 points)

Please respond to the following prompts in a short answer format.
1/ Based on these data, how would you rank order each student from most advanced to least
advanced? Support your response with specific test data. Ex: I ranked Maria first because... I
ranked Duante second because... [one paragraph]
RANK: (1) I ranked Talia first because her scores were the highest averaging 94% over all
four assessments, (2) I ranked Sarah second because her average of 74% over all four
assessments, (3) I ranked Audrey third because of her average of 66% over all four
assessments, (4), I ranked Jacob fourth because of his 26% average over all four assessments.

2/ What advice would you offer to Mr. Jackson about adjusting his group composition? Support
your rationale with specific test data. Assume he has other children in his class with similar
needs as all four of these kiddos. Ex: I think Austin should be moved to a more advanced group
because he is ready to work on… I think Cheng and Tanya can remain in this group since they
both need to work on… (3-4 paragraphs)
Mr. Jackson can consider several adjustments to optimize the group composition for effective
learning.

First, Talia and Sarah have good reading skills. Their comprehension abilities are notable,
suggesting they could benefit from more challenging reading materials to continue her
progress. Placing them in a group with similarly advanced readers would provide them with
 the stimulation and pace they needs to thrive.

Audrey, on the other hand, struggles a bit with decoding. She may benefit from additional
support to improve her fundamental reading skills. Placing her in a group where there's a focus
on phonics instruction and targeted interventions for fluency could be helpful

Finally, Jacob shows potential in reading comprehension but requires additional support.

3/ Explain to Mr. Jackson why teaching one letter per week in Kindergarten is ineffective and
suggest an alternative. (one paragraph, with informal citation from assigned readings; e.g.,
Reutzel & Cooter, p. xx).
“Mr. Jackson, teaching one letter per week in Kindergarten might not be the most effective
approach because it can lead to a lack of depth and meaningful engagement with each letter.
Research suggests that young learners benefit from more intensive and focused instruction on
individual letter-sound correspondences to develop phonemic awareness and early literacy
skills. As an alternative, instead of spreading instruction thinly across the alphabet, consider
adopting a more targeted approach, focusing on a smaller set of letters each week while
providing opportunities for hands-on exploration, multisensory activities, and meaningful
practice with letter-sound relationships to promote better understanding and retention.”

4/ Explain why Mr. Jackson should be careful not to append the schwa phoneme /ə/ to consonant
sounds during instruction. Ex: The letter “b” says /bə/. Consider how this habit could negatively
impact decoding (reading) and encoding (writing) for some children, keeping in mind that young
children are literal thinkers. You may need to make some inferences. (one paragraph)
Mr. Jackson should be careful not to append the schwa phoneme /ə/ to consonant sounds
during instruction because it could lead to confusion for the student’s reading and writing
skills development, especially those struggling readers. Introducing the schwa sound after
consonants may create complexity in decoding (and encoding) for his young learners, as they
often need explicit connections between letters and their corresponding sounds. Adding /ə/ to
consonant sounds might blur this association, making it harder to better understand phonetic
principles. Kids are super literal, so they may struggle to understand why a consonant like "b"
would have an added sound, creating problems with reading and writing skills. Basically, for
clarity’s sake he shouldn’t use unnecessary sounds.

PART VII: REFERENCES

List your references in alphabetical order by author last name. Do not worry about precise APA
formatting or hanging indent. Module presentations can be informal (Ex: PCC, EDC 272 M2
PPT).

Reutzel, D. R., & Cooter, R.B. (2019). Teaching Children to Read: The Teacher Makes the
Difference (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.

Module 2 PPT: Reading Foundations